Washington Has A Grand Canyon And It’s Too Beautiful For Words

Anyone who has seen the Grand Canyon in Arizona can attest to its vastness and natural beauty. But we also happen to have a “grand canyon” right here in Washington, and it’s incredible. You’ll find it at the beautiful Palouse Falls State Park.

According to the Palouse tribe, this state park had an interesting start. The Palouse River once flowed smoothly into the Snake River, but four giant brothers decided to pursue a mythic creature called Big Beaver. Each time Big Beaver was speared, he gouged the canyon walls and caused the river to bend and change. The fifth time he was speared he fought the brothers with all his might and tore out a huge canyon in the process.

The river tumbled over the cliff Big Beaver created and became Palouse Falls. The jagged canyon walls show the deep marks of Big Beaver’s claws. The falls were originally called Aputapat, but the name was changed later to honor the Palouse tribe.

The cliffs and canyons that make Palouse Falls so spectacular were actually carved out by the giant flood that happened between 15,000 and 30,000 years ago when the Missoula Ice Dam broke apart. That flood shaped the entire region, including the Columbia River.

Palouse Falls State Park has so much incredible scenery. Of course, its shining glory is the waterfall itself, which was named the official Washington State Waterfall in 2014. The proposal for the bill was started by a group of elementary school students from Washtucna who lobbed the state legislature.